PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — Without a state budget, money for several Pennsylvania programs is being held back and it's contributing to a double whammy in the film industry.
Television and film writers have been on strike since May, with the actors union joining the picket line in July.
Effects of the stoppage are being felt in cities across the U.S., including here in Philadelphia.
"We don't know how long this is going to go on. I think it could go on for a long time," said Sharon Pinkenson, executive director of the Greater Philadelphia Film Office. She says gridlock in Harrisburg is making matters worse.
"It's really been very challenging between the Writers Guild and then the actors going out as well, and then on top of that, we don't have a budget in Pennsylvania."
The budget impasse means funds aren't being distributed to state programs like the Film Production Tax Credit, which offers a 25% tax credit to films that spend at least 60% of the total production budget in the state.
The Greater Philadelphia Film Office says more than 1,900 people in the area work in the film industry.
A total of 735 productions were shot in our region in 2022, which generated more than $500 million.
Pennsylvania reaches the cap for credit recipients every year, and Pinkenson says it's important to attract the industry to our state.
"There are states like Georgia that are uncapped... COME! They want you to come and they provide the tax credits. We don't have that in Pennsylvania."
Pinkenson says actors and writers may be the most high-profile, but people in all types of trades are out of work because of the strike.
"The grips and the electrics, and there are people who provide costuming, and the whole catering situation, the trucks, the drivers," she added.
"Once this gets resolved, both the strikes and the budget, we're gonna be rocking and rolling again. So we'll be really, really busy."
